End of an Era at Winchester

Winchester Australia have announced they will be transforming its business during 2018-19 to focus on the import and distribution of ammunition, firearms and associated accessories.

Winchester Australia general manager Clive Pugh said that ammunition assembly operations at its factory in Geelong would cease during 2019, with manufacture of products currently made in Geelong moving to Winchester sites in the United States.

“As we shift out of local manufacturing we will increase the import and distribution side of our business, expanding the use of our warehousing facilities in Geelong,” Mr Pugh said.

“Ammunition imports have been a substantial part of our business for many years and our customers, particularly the major ones, are well-established users of imported products so we plan a seamless transition to continue full availability and indeed increase the range.

“The decision to cease local manufacture is no reflection on the talents of our manufacturing employees, who have served our customers and the company well. This was a difficult business decision that was driven by the need to provide our customers and end users with the best product from the global Winchester operations while reducing costs within the overall Winchester business.

“We will be providing support and full entitlements to all those people who leave the company, although we will also be exploring opportunities for some people to move to new roles,” he said.

While this news truly does mark the end of an era, Field & Game Australia looks forward to continuing our relationship with Winchester Australia.